A Heart Made of Glass
by PrinnyMuchIt
Summary: With a bit of encouragement from Yoshiki, Ayumi Shinozaki is determined to make Satoshi her boyfriend but how far will she go to get what she wants? Will her morals get in-between her mission or will her desire blind her of her surroundings?
1. Unwanted Advice

_"The worst pain in the world goes beyond the physical. Even further beyond any other emotional pain one can feel. It is the betrayal of a friend." _

_By Heather Brewer_

* * *

**#01 [Unwanted Advice]**

Have you ever fallen in love with someone to only to have your feelings rejected? How about, having someone confess to you and only to reject them? Or have you ever wondered if you can ever take back what you said and wash away that regret and guilt?

I wish I can lie to myself than to ever admit to committing myself of these actions, but the truth hurts more when you get someone else involved in them, especially when it involves a friend to end up with a broken heart.

Where do I start, from the beginning on Valentine's Day? Or should I start on what transpired yesterday on the school's rooftop?

How impolite of me, I didn't even introduce myself. My name is Ayumi Shinozaki. I'm 17 years old and class representative of classroom 2-9. If you ever attended Kisaragi Academy, you would know me as the occult class representative and if you don't know me, I have a major crush on Satoshi Mochida, who in my eyes is the only man that is kind and trustworthy.

As for the events that transpired, it started on Valentine's Day where we celebrate this holiday by having the girls handing out chocolates to the boys. On this special day I had planned out to present some chocolates that I specially made at home, using a recipe I found online, to Mochida and confess my feelings towards him.

I started my morning off by firmly brushed my hair leaving no chance for any stray or unwanted slit-ends to show up. I tied my hair in my signature twin pigtails with yellow hair ties that I recently bought for this occasion. Along with a new blue skirt that was slightly shorter than the school's but not too short to be noticeable, just enough to show off my legs. Finally I lightly mist myself with perfume before heading my way to school.

My first thought was to hand him the chocolates before school, before any other girl could, so I waited by the school gate. I carefully browsed each student walking by for Mochida. But I was unaware of one person who was able to walk up to me, an ex-delinquent in my class who has somewhat-spiky blonde hair, Yoshiki Kishinuma.

"Sup, Shinozaki," He waved a greeting.

Lately he's more talkative towards me but he always would get on my nerves, especially with that blonde hair of his. Every time I see it, I just want to yank on his hair and tear it off his head. But not everything about him is so bad. When we first met, Kishinuma had a bad habit of smoking and causing trouble at school, now he's learned to let go of his old habits.

Kishinuma waved his hand in front of my face since I didn't give a response to his earlier and somewhat greeting. "Hey Shinozaki, if you don't close your mouth and pay attention, you might just swallow a fly."

I immediately covered my mouth and glanced away from Kishinuma. As much as his old habits have changed, his attitude hasn't. He's still as direct and discourteous as ever.

I averted my attention away from my thoughts and slapped his hand away from my face. "Thank you _so_ much for your charitable concern, Kishinuma," I spoke with sarcasm in my sentence.

Then a thought occurred to me that Kishinuma would often walk to school with Mochida. If anything, he should be in close proximity of the school gate. I quickly glanced behind me to spot him, unfortunately he wasn't nowhere in plain sight.

I took deep depressing sigh as I claimed my loss knowing obviously I must have missed him while I was greeted by Kishinuma.

"What's wrong, Shinozaki?"

"Nothing," I responded in defeat. "Let's get to class before you're marked as tardy again."

I made my way to the classroom along with Kishinuma walking behind me. There was no way I could hand Mochida the chocolates in front the class, which would be too embarrassing. My best choice would be to encounter him during lunch for a private conversation.

Kishinuma and I eventually made it to class, greeted the rest of our friends and got seated before Yui-sensei called for attendance.

**Later…**

As soon as the school bell chimed for lunchtime, I took the opportunity to go deliver the chocolates and confess. Unfortunately, Mochida was nowhere in the cafeteria. As I began to worry, I went to his best friend for some answers.

"Kishinuma, have you seen Mochida?" I asked him politely.

"Hello to you too, Shinozaki," he responded with a smirk, turning his head towards me.

"Just answer the question!" I raised my voice at him. I wasn't in the mood for his jokes, especially when time was inadequate to me.

"Sheesh!" He jerked away at my demand. "You don't have to bite my ear off. As for Satoshi's whereabouts, I don't know exactly where he is. The last time I saw him, he said something about heading towards the rooftop."

With a more-or-less satisfied answer, I took my leave and bid thanks to Kishinuma.

As I headed towards the rooftop with the chocolates in my hands, the door was not completely shut and through the gap, I could see Mochida standing outside. Before I could think of swinging the door open and surprise him, I spotted him talking to someone. Curious, I leaned in to see who he was talking to. Surprised and disappointed, it turned out to be Naomi Nakashima, another girl who also is competing for the love of Mochida. Deciding on whether to barge in-between them or not, I instead peeked through the gap as I continued to watch the events unravel.

Nakashima held out a box of chocolates in front of her as her face was flushed red as a cherry. She kept her head down, avoiding any eye contact with him. Mochida was smiling nervously as he rubbed the back of his head as if he were unsure how to respond. I, in the other hand, knew exactly what this was; a love confession. I couldn't believe that Nakashima took the lead over me. Surely I was upset and yet heartbroken, I wasn't so sure what to say or do in this situation. As I bit my lip and held my chocolates tightly close to my chest, I ran down the stairs.

I allowed my body to take its course. I didn't care where I was at; I just wanted to leave the area. As I passed students and hallways, I found myself in my empty classroom staring down on Mochida's desk with the chocolates in my hands. I gripped the box tightly as I wanted to destroy the thing I worked hard for. I mean, it was already blown up in my face earlier so why should I care? It wasn't like Mochida was going to accept my chocolates anyway.

Before I could tear my chocolates apart, the classroom door slides open only to reveal a blonde haired boy, Kishinuma. He entered with a surprised look in his face as if I caught him off guard.

"Sh-Shinozaki?! W-What are you doing here?"

I quickly wiped my tears off my face and put on a fake smile as quickly as possible. I responded to Kishinuma's questions as casually as possible, "Just going to return a book to the school library. What about you? Planning to do your homework on the last minute before class?"

"Nah, I already had Satoshi help me out. I'm actually here to grab my bento."

When Kishinuma mentioned Mochida's name, my body shook but I remained quiet as I watched Kishinuma walk towards his desk and grab his lunch. Secretly I tried to hide the box of chocolates behind my back. I didn't want to risk him asking questions and have him meddle in my love life. Unfortunately I was asking a bit much out of him, as Kishinuma took notice of chocolates and my expression.

"What's got you so troubled, Shinozaki?"

"N-Nothing's wrong!" I responded with haste, in hopes he would drop the topic and leave me alone.

He took a moment to progress, as if he was choosing carefully what to say next. "Is this about Valentine's Day?"

I averted my eyes away from him, I slowly responded, "Y-Yes…" I wasn't so sure why I wanted to continue telling him, maybe it was his sharp grey eyes but I continued by revealing the chocolates I hid behind me.

"You see, I made these chocolates and planned on giving them to a boy I like." Of course the boy is Mochida, but I didn't want him to know and spill the beans. In the meantime, I'll just keep it anonymous.

"Then what seems to be the problem? Just give him the chocolates." He said bluntly.

I sighed as I nearly forgot who I was speaking with. "It's not that easy, Kishinuma. Firstly, what if they don't taste so well? What if he doesn't like them and tosses them away?" I said as I raised my voice and averted my gaze to the ground. "What if he doesn't return the same feelings I have for him?"

Kishinuma waves his hands as to signal me to keep my voice down before he could respond. "Well if you truly did put your heart into making that chocolate, though I'm not saying you didn't, then I believe that it'll taste good, especially if it's for the guy you like! I bet he'll like them no matter how they taste! And if he doesn't I'll find the poor bastard myself and forcefully feed it to him!" He said with a goofy, and yet heartwarming grin on his face.

My eyes spread wide open as I was shocked at the words coming out of Kishinuma's mouth. I couldn't believe it, Kishinuma was actually comforting me. I had to ask myself, why he would say these kind words to me when usually we would either argue or get on each others' nerves. Then I started to piece things together, what if Kishinuma found out who I actually meant by "a boy." What if Kishinuma is speaking out for his best friend and reminding me what kind of man Mochida is.

Here I was, the class representative, being comforted and lectured by an ex-delinquent. I could only giggle to myself at the very thought. Then an idea came to me, a cunning one at that. If Kishinuma was truly speaking out for Mochida, maybe I could use him to get Mochida. Since I'm always clinging after him, maybe if I spend more time with his best friend instead, he'll get jealous and crawl back to me.

So I decided to put my plan into action, by pressing the box of chocolates towards Kishinuma. "So why don't you give them a try?" I said with an innocent smile on my face.

"W-Wh-What?!" Kishinuma shouted in shock. A slight pink blush was seen across his face. "What do you mean? I thought those chocolates for that boy that you liked?!"

"Of course they were, but I'm reconsidering it since you've helped by comforting me in my situation. Besides I can always try again next year."

As Kishinuma takes a glance of chocolates that are in his hands, he responds, "I-I guess."

"Just make sure to tell me how they taste. I need to know if I really want to win his heart over," I say cheerfully.

Kishinuma remained silent as if he was hesitant to believe in my words and take the chocolate.

"Look, if you don't want them I can always take them back!" I said as I got upset.

"N-No… Um… I mean… I would be happy to take your chocolates!"

"That's the spirit," I reassured. "Now let's head back to the cafeteria before everyone suspects that we're gone."

"Sure thing, Shinozaki," he responded as he heads out the door.

I soon followed him out the door as I kept my appearance in check. If I know Kishinuma, he'll probably boast to Mochida about the chocolates, which works well with my plan. With Kishinuma as my wingman and by getting Mochida to envy for my attention and affection, there's nothing that can go wrong.

…

…

…

_If only I could have stopped myself right there… no… before I gave him the chocolates. Maybe… just maybe things would have turned out differently._

**A/N: To celebrate my move into a new city, getting a job in under 3 weeks and getting myself a new laptop; I decided to write a fanfic on my OTP and draw my own cover art. As much as I love seeing Ayumi and Yoshiki together as much as the next guy, but we mustn't forget what makes this couple so admired and lovable; tragedy. It's like a knife that stabs and twists inside us but doesn't make us bleed.**

**So unlike my last fanfic, Guardian Angel, this one will be settled in a few multi-chapters. I apologize in advance if there's any grammar errors or if you get lost. It's a first for me, but the inexperience is making me excited. I also drew the coverart myself. So I hope you enjoyed this chapter and look forward to the next one.**

_EDIT: Did I really contradict myself by saying that Ayumi had help then claiming she didn't in Chapter 2? I know it's my first multi-chapter fanfic but I can't believe the errors I left behind. *facepalms self*_


	2. In This Together

_"I'm not crying because of you; you're not worth it. I'm crying because my delusion of who you were was shattered by the truth of who you are."_

_By Steve Maraboli_

* * *

**#02 [In This Together]**

As we returned back to our group of friends for lunch, just like I've predicted, Kishinuma met up with Mochida and mentioned the chocolates he received earlier from me. I secretly took glances from afar and mentally noted down all of Mochida's reactions.

At first, his eyes appear surprised as they widely open. He took a quick glance at me before returning his attention back to Kishinuma. Then he spoke back to Kishinuma, although I wasn't sure what they were saying, but his voice sounded nervous. Afterwards, his expression shifted into a generous smile. As the school bells rang to notify us to return to our classrooms, he gives Kishinuma a pat on the shoulder before leaving the lunch table. I became baffled by his actions.

_Why would he smile for Kishinuma as if he was happy for him? Granted, Kishinuma is his best friend but what was up with that pat on the shoulder? It's like he was congratulating Kishinuma. Curses, now Mochida really thinks I have a thing for Kishinuma! Stupid delinquent, I should've known better to put my faith in him!_

_I have to calm down; it would be very unladylike of me to explode in anger in front my classmates. Instead I have to rethink this through. True, Mochida gave a smile but his first reaction was out of shock. What if Mochida smile wasn't really expressing any emotion of praise but rather used as a guise?_

_If he really believes in our lie, then it only makes sense for Mochida to act like that! He was only being sympathetic and didn't want to hurt his best friend. That's my Mochida for you, always putting others before himself._

I finished my thoughts and returned back to the classroom before session could start. The rest of the day went by smoothly and normally till the bell rang again. School was done for the day and I started to pack my assignments into my bag. As the classroom was being vacant from its students, one with blonde hair approached to me.

"Hey Shinozaki," he greeted me from behind.

"Hey Kishinuma," I greeted back to him.

"You have anything planned this afternoon?" He asked as he scratches the side of his cheek.

"Why do you ask?"

"W-Well, there's this karaoke place I know of and… well… they have a special deal for Valentine's Day. So I thought if you wanted to–"

"I can't," I rudely interrupted him. "I just want to go home, finish my homework and enjoy the rest of my evening."

"…" Kishinuma was in silence with his head down.

I slowly started to head towards the door, "That's something you should consider yourself instead of wasting your time and money."

"I guess you're right…" He quietly responded.

"If that's everything that needs to be said, I'm heading home now."

"H-How about I…um…I mean… Do you mind if I walk you home?" Kishinuma raised his head and looked at me.

My first thought was to reject his offer but considering that I already rejected his first offer, I thought I would just pity him and consent to his idea. "Not at all Kishinuma."

"R-Really?!"

"Don't make me repeat myself again Kishinuma," I scowled at him.

"Yes ma'am!" He exclaimed before he followed me out the door.

**15 minutes later…**

Along the way back, Kishinuma and I were in silent. None of us brought up a conversation or rather; I couldn't come up with one since I rarely knew him. I thought of bringing up the topic of school, but only realized that we already discussed about it before the departure.

If the silence wasn't already enough, Kishinuma wasn't helping with this awkward situation by just taking glances at me. As I tried to avoid his gaze, I took notice that my house was only a few blocks away.

As I turned around to face him I said, "Here's just fine Kishinuma. I can see my house just a few blocks from here."

"Uh… you sure about that? I don't mind walking you the whole way there," he responded.

"No, that's alright Kishinuma. There's no need of you to worry about me," I nervously chuckled.

"If you say so," his tone started to go quietly soft.

"I'll see you tomorrow. Make sure to do your homework assignments," I pleaded farewell before I was stopped once more by Kishinuma.

"W-Wait Shinozaki!"

"Hm?" I turned my head back to Kishinuma.

"Before you go… I thought I might tell you about the chocolates." He scratched the back of his head.

My mind snapped into reality as I forgot about the chocolates. "You shouldn't mind them, they were only–"

"They were awful."

My eyes spread wide open as they glared at Kishinuma. There was a small pause of silence that I could've swore I heard the wind go pass us.

"What do you mean?" I tried to ask without exploding at him.

"I mean they tasted awful."

"I got that part, I meant by you explaining," I said as my tone started to rise with irritation.

"Well… um… it seemed like you melted different types of chocolate altogether. Not every chocolate are the same or rather taste the same. Also I wanted to point out to you that you mixed salt instead of sugar…"

As Kishinuma kept going on about how awful my chocolates were, I really wanted to yell at him. It's just like him to be very insensitive about other people and their hard work. Before I could snap at him, I felt a hand on my head. It was Kishinuma giving me a pat on the head and it wasn't rough like his appearance, it was gentle and full of warmth.

"But next time, how about we both make the chocolates together. I promise it'll taste as good as it looks," he said with a tender smile.

As much as I wanted to smack his hand off of me, but for some reason my anger was washed away by his action. As confused as I was with him, I was more confused with myself as a slight sound throbbed against my chest. Soon as he removed his hand, so did the warmth that came with it.

"I'll see you tomorrow!" He pleaded his farewell with a wave of his hand and walked the other direction.

I quietly watched him walk away until he was no longer in plain sight. I softly placed my hand on my head, the very spot he touched with his very hand. That feeling was still there but so was the confusion. Instead of deeply thinking about it, I simply pushed the thought aside as a mere friendly gesture and headed straight home.

…

…

If you're like me, in high school, you would know that rumors spread like wildfire. In this scenario, those chocolates were just the sparks of a bigger flame and I was merely the gasoline.

**A/N: First off, I apologize that I lied. I thought I would have it finished by last week but I didn't like my first draft. As I wrote it, I felt like deleting the darn thing. But thanks to some Corpse Party manga and some Ayushiki, I was refueled and ready to get back on the keyboard. Originally this chapter was supposed to be longer but I thought it would be best to save that piece for later.**

**Also I like to thank to all you readers who appreciated the first chapter and my poem. I remember the first two days, my phone was blaring up with emails and, I'm not going to lie, I felt nervous as I felt as I had some expatiations from you guys. Nevermore, I really appreciate reviews/follows/favs. Thank you ^-^**


	3. The Visit

_"The male for all his bravado and exploration, is the loyal one, the one who generally feels love. The female is skilled at betrayal, torture and damnation."_

_By Charles Bukowski_

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**#03 [The Visit]**

I awoke the next morning, started my day with my radio playing in the background as I got dressed. Midst of brushing my hair, the radio announced that today would be a nice day with clear skies.

'_That's nice to know, maybe I could get Mochida to walk me home,'_ I thought to myself as I finished arranging my hair.

I grabbed my schoolbag and headed downstairs where I greeted my mother, who was in the kitchen, and my sister, Hinoe, who was sipping a cup of coffee as she going through some files.

"Good morning Ayumi. Did you sleep well?" My mother asked as she continued with her duties.

"Yes I did, thanks for asking."

Hinoe dropped her attention from the papers and refocused her eyes on me. "Sister, I thought I would warn you to bring an umbrella to school today," she said with concern.

"You shouldn't be so concern Hinoe. The radio said the weather today would clear skies," I tried to reassure my sister.

"Very well," she complied. "So how did yesterday go? Did you ever get to deliver those chocolates?"

"Aw, yes Ayumi. Please tell us more. Were you able to confess to that boy you like?" My mother joined in with a tease.

With a slight flush of pink across my face, "Unfortunately, I didn't get to hand it to him. The chocolates weren't so good."

"Aw, even when you put so much effort in them too," my mother pitied me as she pretended to wipe a tear from her eye.

"If you didn't give it that Mochida boy, what did you do with them?" Hinoe asked before taking another sip from her cup.

"I… uh… I threw them away since they tasted awful."

"But you clearly didn't," my sister proclaimed.

"Huh?"

"Sorry, let me rephrase. How were you able to know those chocolates weren't good in the first place?"

"I-I tasted them for myself, of course!" I exclaimed as I pressed my hand on my chest.

"Hm… but honey, didn't you refuse to taste it when you first made it, as you proclaimed that your feelings are what mattered the most?" My mother teased once again.

"…."

"So who did you give it to then?" Both my mother and sister interrogated me.

"Sheesh! You guys are going to make me late for school!" I shouted as I rushed out the door.

Before I could shut the door behind me, I could here them pleading me farewell. I continued my path towards school as I hoped the rest of my day will go well.

**4 hours later…**

The school bell rings to notify the students that the lunch break has begun. Classmates began to head to their usual spots in the cafeteria with their friends; I planned to do the same.

Before I could go, I heard a chime go off in the classroom and turned to see a disappointed blonde. He talked to Mochida before grabbing his bag and walked out the door.

I approached Mochida, "What's wrong with Kishinuma?"

"Nothing to worry yourself, class rep. Yoshiki got called in from work. Apparently one of the employees strained his ankle," he responded to my question.

I sighed, "And what about classes? He's surely not passing all his classes with flying colors, you know."

"You shouldn't worry about it Shinozaki. I told him I would take notes for him," he assured me with a thumbs-up. It was so like Mochida to be kind and do favors for others without the need of payment. If anything, he only reassured me of my feelings that I have for him.

"Let's go meet up with the others for lunch before Shinohara sends in a search team for us," he said with a chuckle in his voice.

On his command, we exit the classroom to meet up with our friends back in the cafeteria. We quickly grabbed our lunch and searched for our friends. I spotted Mayu Suzumoto signaling us with the rest of our friends by our usual table. I sat next to Mayu as Mochida sat next to Sakutaro Morishige who was on his phone. Next to Mochida was Seiko Shinohara who was harassing Nakashima in a playful manner.

"Where's Kishinuma? Is he not going to join us for lunch?" Mayu asked as she looked around her surroundings for the blonde boy.

"No, he had matters to attend to at work," I responded before I gave grace for the food.

"What's the matter class rep, already feeling lonely without your boyfriend?" Shinohara teased.

"Boyfriend?! Since when was I ever paired up with him?!" I raised my voice at her.

"Ouch, wouldn't poor Kishinuma feel so heartbroken," she dramatically sighs.

"I don't understand, didn't you give him chocolates yesterday on Valentine's Day?" Mayu popped the question with curiosity.

"W-Who told you that?!" I slightly blushed with embarrassment.

"Oh, Satoshi told me after school," Nakashima admitted.

"Uh… Those were just supplementary chocolates!" I said as I lied between my teeth but I didn't want them to know about my plan, especially Nakashima as she has a thing for Mochida.

"The pains… make it… stop," Shinohara placed her hand on her chest as she voiced herself to imitate Kishinuma.

"If only you would put that much effort in drama," Morishige sternly said as he pressed his glasses back.

"Jokes aside," Mochida chuckles, "the very thought of it was really nice of you. You have no idea how happy he was to receive them."

_If only they knew how rudely Kishinuma commented about how bad my chocolates were._

"He surely had a big smile on his face. We rarely get to see him smile that big," Mayu said as she puts on a cheerful face.

_He was probably making fun of me and trying to keep his laughter in._

"Who knows class rep, maybe you'll receive something for White Day," Nakashima commented.

_If it's anything, I would prefer chocolates so I can throw it back at his face for making fun of mine._

"Knowing Kishinuma, he'll probably go his way and buy you some jewelry like a necklace or earrings," Shinohara said with a smirk across her face.

_It'll probably be cheap jewelry from some thrift shop or even a suspicious man in an alleyway._

"Really?" Morishige questioned Shinohara. "To me, Kishinuma doesn't seem the kind of guy to present material things to a girl. If anything, it'll probably be something creative like a song or a home-cooked meal."

_Kishinuma being creative? The guy doesn't even pay attention in class, let alone, pass them._

As I put a halt on my thoughts, I rejoined my friends in their conversation as I persuaded them to change the topic. We continued to converse until the lunch was over and returned back to the class.

**After school…**

I looked through the window of our classroom to see the clear skies to be dark clouds, pouring cats and dogs. It seemed like it would not let up any time soon. Yui-sensei was still in the classroom, wiping the whiteboard.

"Is there something that matter, Ayumi?" Yui-sensei asked me with worry.

"I forgot to bring my umbrella today with me," I responded with defeat.

"Oh my," Yui-sensei gasped. "If you like, I can give you a ride home."

"It's alright, Yui-sensei but I can't ask you do that. You still have your responsibilities as a teacher to take care of first."

Then an idea sparked inside my mind, "Actually I'll see if I can have Mochida walk me home." I started to imagine Mochida and I talking under the same umbrella, locked hip to hip as we gently hold hands along the way home. I giggled to myself before I made my way to the door before Yui-sensei stopped me.

"But Mochida already left with Nakashima. They went together to pick up his little sister from middle school," she notified me.

My hearted stopped, clenching my fists together as I heard Nakashima's name in the same sentence as Mochida's. '_That girl is always getting in my way with Mochida. I bet she's just poisoning his mind with her voluptuous body,'_I angrily thought to myself.

"Is everything alright Ayumi?"

"Yeah, I'm completely fine," I completely lied with a false smile. "Well, I better start heading home. I'll see you tomorrow Yui-sensei!" I pleaded farewell in a rush, worried that she would protest and take me home.

The way back home was dull and damped, even with using my bag to cover myself from the rain. By the time I've arrived home, I was soaked from head to toe. I went to grab a towel to dry myself and headed towards my room where I just laid across my bed. I could only stare at the ceiling as I lost myself in my thoughts. The mere thought of Mochida being with Nakashima made my blood boil but it also struck pain and sadness in me.

'_Does Mochida actually prefer Nakashima more than me?'_I questioned. I started to, not doubt my feelings for Mochida, but doubt my possibility with him. _'I mean, I'm only a short, flat-chested, creepy girl who's into the occult. Compared to Nakashima, I'm leagues behind her.'_

I took a sigh before finishing my thoughts. All these negativity was mentally tiring and bringing a cold atmosphere, I decided to cuddle myself with my blanket and rest for a few minutes.

**The next morning…**

'_How stupid could I be?! I forgot to change out of my damped school uniform before taking my nap. Speaking of taking a nap, I ended up sleeping for the whole day and only to wake up with a bad cold,'_ I angrily shouted at myself before blowing my nose in another tissue.

"It's oddly strange that you would sleep with wet clothes on. Were you planning to get sick today?" My mother asked as she stood besides my bed.

"No mom, I was just… physically tired from school to change out of my uniform," I responded back to her.

"Nevertheless, you should stay home, I'll call the school that you'll be absent for today,"

"Thanks mom," I said before mom left the room to make the phone call. Then an idea hit me and decided to send Mayu a text that I was sick for today. '_If Mayu tells everyone, maybe all of my friends would pay me a home visit after school. Maybe even Mochida would…'_my thoughts paused for a minute as a frown appeared on my face. My thoughts refocused about Mochida and my previous thoughts of yesterday. _'Maybe being sick was a good thing for me. It'll give me plenty of time to recollect myself before facing Mochida again.'_

Then my phone buzzed, showing Mayu replied to my text and wishing me to get well soon. Minutes before class could begin, my phone buzzed repeatedly as the rest of my friends wished me a good recovery, even Nakashima. I strolled through my messages and found that I didn't receive anything from one of my friends, Kishinuma. For some reason, it made me sad that he didn't care about my wellbeing.

My thoughts were interrupted when I heard my mom enter my room. "I called the school and you'll be excused for today but make sure you call your classmates to get your homework assignments from them."

"I already notified them," I clarified by showing her my phone.

"Good now for the bad news. We ran out of cold medicine so I got to drop by the local pharmacy to get some and run some errands along the way. You think you'll be okay while I'm gone?"

"Sure thing mom," I quickly replied.

…

…

It's been thirty minutes since my mother left to do her errands and hasn't returned. I couldn't stand being sick especially having to sneeze every couple of minutes. As I needed another set of tissues, I headed downstairs.

Ding-dong!

Along the way, the doorbell rang. I believed it was my mother who had trouble opening the door. So I made my way towards the door in my slow, weak pace.

Ding-dong! Ding-dong!

Not even a minute passed and the doorbell rang twice. Somehow I doubted that it was my mother behind the door. My mother would never be rudely impatient to have the door opened. Before the doorbell could be rung again, I rushed myself to the door and widely opened it.

By the door stood a male student that everyone in my classroom could identify easily and known to have a bad record with the teachers, Yoshiki Kishinuma.

"S-Shinozaki?! Hey… I mean, good morning," he nervously greeted me.

"Kishinuma? What are you doing in front of my house? No… I have a better question. What are you doing out here when you should be attending class right now?" I started to interrogate him.

"Whoa, easy there Shinozaki one question at a time. I came to pay you a visit before I go to school."

"You're already late as it is, you should be striving to do better in your studies," I said with my eyes slightly narrowed.

"I always been late before, what's wrong for me paying a sick friend a visit?"

"Who told you I was even sick? I don't recall ever telling you," I started to be suspicious of him.

"That's because we never exchanged numbers in the first place," he retorted back at me. "Besides Suzumoto was kind enough to tell me about your condition. I'm guessing that rainstorm yesterday got you pretty badly."

For a moment I felt revealed to know his reason behind his nonexistent text message.

"So are you going to keep me hanging outside or are you going to let me inside already?"

"And, do tell, would I even let you inside of my home?"

Kishinuma revealed to me a bag he had in his hand, "Because I was nice enough to bring you things to cure you from that cold."

Hesitant to let the blonde inside, he appeared to have no hidden motives thus was allowed to step inside.

"Thank you Shinozaki," he thanked me before going inside and removing his shoes. "You mind if I use your microwave?"

"If you're planning to make yourself some breakfast, you could forget it," I snapped at him.

"Well you're half correct, but the food isn't for me. It's chicken noodle soup that I cooked up for you this morning," Kishinuma said with a generous smile.

"Do whatever you want; I'm going to head upstairs to my room. You better not do anything that'll make me regret letting you in."

"Yes Shinozaki-sama, [1]" He rolled his eyes before heading towards the kitchen.

As I made my way back to my bedroom, I heard the microwave finish heating up the soup. I sat up on my bed as I waited for Kishinuma to arrive. He came in with a bowl and the bag in his hands.

As he presented the soup to me, "It's something I whipped up before making my way to your house. It's some chicken noodle soup with carrots, celery and potatoes. I wasn't sure if you were allergic to anything, but I could always make you a new batch," he said with concern in his voice.

"No, this is just fine," I replied as I grabbed the bowl from him and took hold of the spoon.

"Be careful, it's still hot."

"Shut up you idiot! I'm not a kid you know," I snapped at him once more.

I dipped the spoon in the soup and scooped a spoonful of the meal. I simply cooled the soup with my breath before inserting the spoon into my mouth. Luckily the soup wasn't hot, but what did bother me was the taste of the meal.

"Okay, what's your gimmick?" I asked as I put the spoon down.

"Gimmick? What gimmick?" Kishinuma tilted his head to the side, confused with my question.

"First the incident in home economic class [2], then you disrespecting the chocolates I worked so hard on, and finally, this soup. When did you become a professional chef?" I retorted, pointing my index finger at him.

"Um," Kishinuma began while he scratched the side of his cheek as a sign of embarrassment. "Well, I do work at a restaurant as a waiter. On my spare time, I would watch the chefs cook and pick up some techniques and recipes."

I narrowed my eyes at him but I couldn't argue with such good food in front of me, of course, I wasn't going to admit it to him. So I continue to eat the rest of the soup.

Kishinuma then brought the bag in front of him as he took the items out of the bag. "I bought you some cold medicine and some orange juice. You should take a least a cap full every 5 hours and don't forget to drink the juice which will provide you plenty of vitamin c."

"You didn't have to do this, my mother was already on her way to get me some medicine," I told him.

"Well that's good for me that I beat her to it," he snorted with a grin.

"Speaking of my mother, you should start going before she gets here. I don't want her to freak out on me for bringing in a boy inside the house without her permission."

"If you say so, I would happily offer to bring your homework but I'm more likely to get detention for arriving late."

I giggled at his misfortunate but generous thought. "I appreciate it, but I think Mayu already has that covered."

Kishinuma placed his hand on my head, like he did on Valentine's Day, and gently patted me. "Get well soon, Shinozaki. I hope to see you tomorrow in better condition."

With that, Kishinuma walked out my room only to hear the front door shut. Moments later, the door was heard again, this time I hear mom's voice.

"Honey, did you leave the door unlock after I left?" She asked as she made her way to my bedroom.

"Sorry mom, I forgot to lock it up," I lied hoping she would believe me.

Entering into room, mom noticed the items by my bed. "Where did you get those? Did you go outside in public?"

"Sorry mom, you were just taking too long and I didn't want to miss another day of school."

"If you say so honey," she seemed pleased with my answer. She made her way towards the door but before she could exit out she said with a smile, "Make sure to properly thank that boy after you get better."

My eyebrow twitched and my hands began to sweat as I was found out. _Just great! Kishinuma was spotted by mom as he left. Now I'll never hear the end of it from my mother!_

…

…

True to Kishinuma's word, I did get better later by the evening. By tomorrow, I was able to go back to school in better condition but in no way did I meet up with him and thanked him. I didn't believe I had to seclude myself to do that.

**[1]: It's used when addressing a person higher than oneself.**

**[2]: That's actually canon from the manga, where the class supposed to cook. Ayumi completely messed up and Yoshiki decides to be helpful and cook for her. While everyone appreciated the food, Ayumi was disgusted and only saw the action as "showing off."**

**A/N: First off, I get confused with cold and flu. Either way, the main idea is across and that was the point. Secondly, it was so hard always identifying everyone by their last names. True, that's how they are addressed but I'm so used to reading their first names that I felt that it would confuse many other readers. If this does become an issue, I would be happily to change it. Thirdly, as off-topic at it sounds, I've officially became an uncle! Fourthly, I thought I would give Yoshiki a different job than his usual one of working at a music store, also to explain his cutlery skills.**

**And lastly, I want to thank you readers again for your support. It makes me happy when you guys enjoy something I make.**

**On that note, I hope you guys look forward to the next chapter next week.**


	4. Handle with Care

"_Creative people are very insecure people because they don't know whether people like them or are in awe of them. That insecurity always comes out. It makes them a better actor, I feel."_

_By Persis Khambatta_

* * *

**#04 [Handle with Care] **

Even after I gotten better and returned back to school, all thanks to Kishinuma, unfortunately things back at school haven't changed which included my relationship with Mochida. As luck was on my side, Nakashima was also unable to get anywhere closer with Mochida. According to Shinohara, Nakashima was going to confess her feelings when delivering the chocolates on Valentine's Day, but she got cold feet and presented them as supplementary chocolates.

Hearing this information got me motivated to proceed with my plan to make Mochida jealous and Kishinuma was going to help me get me my man.

…

…

The first few days were simple; I would avoid having any communication with Mochida. To show, I wasn't just simply ignoring him, I would be chat with Kishinuma. Unfortunately that wasn't enough to persuade him, what's worse, the conversations with Kishinuma were always a bore. Since he never showed any interest in his education, there was almost nothing to talk about. The only time it was interesting was he did the talking, mentioning about his hobbies and work.

A week had passed and no results came out of Mochida, so I decided to take a different route, one that would kill two birds with one stone. I would assist Kishinuma with class assignments and sit next to him. Whenever Mochida would take a glance at us, I would physically lean closer to Kishinuma even to the point of pressing my "lack of" chest against his body. Mochida would quickly glance away which meant I was able to get his attention. As for Kishinuma, his body would always tremble and his face would always get red. I kindly asked him once if he was sick and needed to see the school nurse, but he refused and returned back to the last question he was on.

Another week had gone by and I was still unable to get Mochida to crack. I took into consideration that maybe Mochida didn't want to start an argument or even a fight in school. So I took it to the streets, I demanded Kishinuma to start walking me back home, using an excuse like "protection against predators." Luckily, he easily complied with my demands and walked me home. To avoid being spotted by my family and have the same incident repeat itself, I had Kishinuma drop me off a block away from my house. Of course he always persisted to take me the whole way, but my answer still remained the same. Unfortunately so was Mochida's, who was still unfazed by all this.

Yet another week passed by and White Day was literally today. A whole month had passed since I came up with this stupid plan but I still was nowhere closer than I originally was. Frustrated, I decided to go with my original plan and confront the source of my problem as well as my feelings; Mochida.

I waited until lunch break; as soon as I heard that bell go off I rushed myself towards Mochida, standing firm and upset at him. "Mochida, we have to talk," I told him.

"Uh… Sure, thing class rep. What did you want to talk about?"

"Not here, let's talk somewhere more private," I harshly responded before grabbing a hold of his wrist and dragged him out of the classroom. We eventually reached our destination on the rooftop where it was more vacant. We stood a few feet from each other.

"Care to explain?" I asked as I tapped my foot on the floor with my arms across together.

"Huh? What do you mean, Shinozaki?" Mochida tilted his head to the side, confused on what topic we were discussing.

Now, I got more upset as if he were acting dumb. So I started to raise my voice at him, "I meant about your attitude towards me! Here I am, trying for the past month– no for two years trying to get you to notice me and you still won't budge!"

"What are you talking about Shinozaki? I've always have treated you the same way like I've always been. You're the class representative and my friend. What more did you want from me?" Mochida calmly responded to my outburst. Through his tone of voice, one could tell how concerned he was for me as well as worried.

"I want you to notice my feelings Satoshi," I confessed. By using his first name, I wanted to show him how serious I was with my emotions.

Mochida stood there, slightly embarrassed at my sudden confession but he still remained silent by rubbing the back of his head. I could tell that he had difficulty coming up with a response, so I decided to repeat myself so there wouldn't be any confusion with my confession.

"I, Ayumi Shinozaki, am in love with you Satoshi Mochida."

Mochida lowered his head, "What about Yosh–," he whispered before he stopped himself mid-sentence. He brought his head back up to face me, "I really appreciate that you feel that way for me, Shinozaki…"

I felt my heart skip a beat when I heard him say that, giving myself high hopes on what he might say next.

"Unfortunately I have to respectfully deny them."

My heart sank so low, maybe even crushed by his rejection or was it my own hopes that made me feel this way.

"You must already have known of my feelings for Naomi?"

I only responded with a nod. I always known he had feelings for Nakashima but I didn't want to believe it. I hoped that I would someday sway his feelings towards me, but I was a fool to believe in such hopes.

"Funny thing is, I kind of hope for one day I could to build up the courage like you did, to confess to her," he finished his sentence with a chuckle. "Look at me talking about my love life but in all seriousness, I hope we can still be friends after this."

As much it sickened me to hear Mochida talk about her, I knew I didn't have the heart to hate him. He still cared about me even when he rejected my confession and his concerned tone in his voice made feel certain.

I nodded my head, "No, it's alright Mochida. I had a sense of feeling that I would get rejected, but I needed to get my feelings out to you," I said.

Then I raised my cheeks to pull off a fake smile, "But what matters the most, is that we're still friends and able to settle this in a civilized fashion."

Mochida wasn't convinced and asked, "Are you sure Shinozaki? We could grab a drink and talk about it."

'_How nice of him,'_ I thought to myself but at the moment I didn't need his sympathy. I was on the verge of crying and I didn't want him to see me in that state. Instead I shook my head at him and said, "I'm quite sure Mochida. Besides shouldn't you be confessing you love to Nakashima?"

A slight flush of embarrassment came across his face, "I just can't confess to her. I don't even know if she likes me back."

"Take my advice from my book and confess to her, you won't know until you tried, right?"

"I guess you're right Shinozaki," he said with a slight smile.

"Of course I'm right. I am the class representative for a reason," I flaunted before I approached behind Mochida and gave him a shove. "Now go get her, before I get upset and send Shinohara after you."

Before Mochida could leave, he gave me a smile, one that told a simple 'thank-you.' Once he was out of sight, I turned towards the wall to lean my back against it. I gave myself a moment to let my emotions flow out of me as I sat down and pulled my knees close to my face.

Then I heard the door slam open and a figure that called out my name, so I lifted my head up to see my visitor. It was no other than Kishinuma.

"Shinozaki, are you alright?" He asked as he slowly approached towards me, as if he were cautious to know if I wanted him here.

Quickly, I rubbed my tears out of my eyes and responded to Kishinuma, "Yeah, everything is fine. I just needed some time to relax from all the schoolwork." I lied to him but I didn't want him to be meddling with my problems.

Kishinuma, instead of taking my word and leaving me be, he still approached me even to the point of taking a knee to be at the same height level as me. I took a glance at him only to see him look deeply in my eyes.

"I know you're not, Shinozaki," he said to me. A few simple words were enough to break me as I swung my arms around his neck and continued to cry. As I cried, I would wipe my tears on his uniform and he would pat the back of my head, as to tell me to let it all out.

Once I was no longer able to bawl out any more tears, Kishinuma sat down next to me. "Do you want to talk about it? You don't have to if you don't want to tell me. I respect your personal space."

I couldn't understand it myself, but I somehow felt I could tell Kishinuma everything, so I shook my head and replied, "I confessed to Mochida but only to get rejected."

Kishinuma eyes grew wide in shock but he let himself relax before he spoke, "I'm sorry to hear that."

"It's okay Kishinuma. I already knew things would turn out like this, I just wasn't emotionally prepared is all."

Kishinuma could only look at me with a painful look on his face, like he was unsure what to say next. I wouldn't blame him, words weren't his forte. Suddenly his facial expression changed into a cheerful one, like he had an idea.

"That reminds me, earlier I was looking for you because I had something to give you," he said as he reached for his school bag and searched inside the bag,

"Something for me?"

"Yeah since, you know, you got me something for Valentine's Day, so I thought I would repay you by getting you something for White Day."

I replayed the scene in my head, remembering the chocolates I gave him which were intentionally for Mochida. I also recalled his 'criticism' on them.

"But you said they were awful!" I exclaimed at him with a bit of embarrassment flushed across my face.

"Don't worry they still are," he joked.

So I pouted, "Let me guess, you got me some chocolates to rub it in my face."

"No even better," he said with a smile before revealing the gift out of his school bag.

"I got you this," he revealed a medium sized crystal ball and handed it to me.

I was mesmerized by the gift; it was a real crystal ball unlike those plastic counterparts. The ball was so clear and reflective that I could see myself on the ball. I looked back at him.

"I knew you have a thing for the occult, so I thought I would get you something like this. Every occult fan needs their own crystal ball, am I right?"

"Kishinuma, I'm quite thankful for the gift but it isn't necessary," I said as I tried to hand it back to him only to have pushed back to me.

"Just consider it a gift for all the birthdays I've forgotten to give you something."

I hesitated but I took into consideration of all the hard work and money he had to do to give me this gift. "Sure thing and thank you Kishinuma," I said with a heartfelt smile.

Kishinuma gave me a smile in return and asked, "Feeling better now Shinozaki?"

"Yeah and thanks."

"Now it's my turn to take an example from you," he started.

_Huh?_

"Shinozaki, I-I…" He paused to gulp down his embarrassment and continued. "Shinozaki, I love you."

_Eh?!_

…

…

_It only took three simple words, three simple words to turn my world upside down. Three simple words that could change everything between him and I. Three simple words that could simply change everything in a heartbeat._

**A/N: Hey you fellow readers, how's it hanging? I apologize that this chapter took longer to upload but in my defense, I did say the progress was going to be slower. So Yoshiki confessed, that's a thing. I wonder how Ayumi will respond to all this. **

**So did everyone get to see and enjoy E3? I know I did but as E3 came to an end, a thought came to me and I wondered to myself if there was any news about localizing Blood Drive. It was announced in May that Blood Drive will come and with a physical copy on Oct. 13****th****. So mark your calendars because it going to be the day the corpses run wild! (is it ironic that it falls on the month of Halloween?)**

**Speaking of Holidays, I have a special treat coming in a few days and I hope you guys will enjoy it.**

**Also, I spotted that you guys liked "The Not So Jealous Ayumi." It's been favorited and followed even when it was just a one-shot story. But I considered, if you really wish for me to continue it, just leave a comment on that story or just pm your thoughts on it. **

**Other than that, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter and your fourth of July, or for all you non-Americans, celebrate your awesomeness because you deserve it! **


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